^4 (A)Then the city was broken into, and all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls beside ^(B)the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were all around the city. And ^[a]they went by way of the Arabah. ⁵ But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho and all his army was scattered from him. ⁶ Then ^(C)they captured the king and ^(D)brought him to the king of Babylon at ^(E)Riblah, and ^[b]he passed sentence on him. ^7 (F)They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, then ^(G)put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him with bronze fetters and brought him to Babylon.

Jerusalem Burned and Plundered

^8 (H)Now on the seventh day of the ^(I)fifth month, which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. ^9 (J)He burned the house of the Lord, ^(K)the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; even every great house he burned with fire. ¹⁰ So all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard ^(L)broke down the walls around Jerusalem.

⁸ ‘But like the ^(A)bad figs which cannot be eaten due to rottenness—indeed, thus says the Lord—so I will ^[a]abandon ^(B)Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, and the ^(C)remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land and the ones who dwell in the land of ^(D)Egypt. ⁹ I will ^(E)make them a terror and an evil for all the kingdoms of the earth, as a ^(F)reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a ^(G)curse in all places where I will scatter them. ¹⁰ I will send the ^(H)sword, the famine and the pestilence upon them until they are destroyed from the land which I gave to them and their forefathers.’”

³ because Zedekiah king of Judah had ^(A)shut him up, saying, “Why do you ^(B)prophesy, saying, ‘^(C)Thus says the Lord, “Behold, I am about to ^(D)give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will take it; ⁴ and Zedekiah king of Judah will ^(E)not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but he will surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will ^(F)speak with him ^[a]face to face and see him eye to eye; ⁵ and he will ^(G)take Zedekiah to Babylon, and he will be there until I visit him,” declares the Lord. “If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will ^(H)not succeed”’?”

⁸ The Chaldeans will also ^(A)return and fight against this city, and they will capture it and burn it with fire.”’

³ Thus says the Lord, ‘This city will certainly be ^(A)given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon and he will capture it.’”